Molecular biomarkers of epileptogenesis.

The heterogeneity of epilepsy syndromes and pathologies creates a great challenge for the search for biomarkers. Not surprisingly, identification of a marker that is specific and sensitive for a given epileptogenic pathology remains an unmet need. There have, however, been several studies of major epileptogenic etiologies like traumatic brain injury that aimed to identify molecular markers in blood and cerebrospinal fluid that predict outcome, by using proteomics and metabolomics. Unfortunately, epileptogenesis has not been analyzed as an outcome measure. Another question to be explored is whether a palette of molecular markers is needed, rather than a single molecule, with each marker probing a different component of epileptogenic pathology. Further, perhaps multiple biomarker platforms (e.g., imaging, proteomics, electrophysiology) should be used in combination and/or in a defined temporal sequence.